I pain that i'm used to
by Adrian 89
Summary: Neku is finally back in the real world but has anything really changed? Or is he stuck at the same place that he was standing in before he entered the U.G. Will he really change?
1. Chapter 1

Friends in fantasy, friends in life?

Fist story so please be gentle with me!

Constructive criticism appreciated!

He slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring down at the asphalt.

-Urgh i...i... i am back?...

-Hay kid are you okey?

He looked up to see a middle aged man reaching out a hand to him. Neku waited a few seconds before he reluctantly took the man's hand. He was quickly pulled up to standing position.

Middle aged man: What happened to you? Why were you laying on the ground? Are you hurt, should i call an ambulance?

Neku: No I'm fine i just need to rest a little.

Neku: You see i was running because I ... and then I tripped over myself, and then I must have fainted... BUT I DON'T NEED AN AMBULANCE

Middle aged man: Calm down you don't have to scream, you are clearly in shock. I should take you to a hospita...

Neku: NO!, I mean no I'll be fine I just need some rest.

Middle aged man: The least I can do is to drive you home so you could get some rest after this, I think it would be a unwise not to take it easy for the rest of the day.

Neku: you don't need to worry I just live a couple of blocks down the road, I promise that I take it easy for the rest of the day... I just need some rest, then I`ll be fine.

The man looked at Neku whit doubt in his eyes, he was quiet for a moment but he finally said: All right I trust your judgement, but you really need to rest, promise me that you take it easy for the rest of the day, OK.

Neku:Yes I will

Ok then... Oh look at the time! is it really that much? Well nice meeting you lad but i am late...

The man gave Neku a smile and said: I cant stand here the whole day I need too get to work before my boss fires me, take care sonny.

The man swiftly walked away from Neku. When Neku was confident that the man could not hear him he let out a loud sigh, the man had startled him but at least he was certain he was back in the town that he was familiar in. He slowly started to walk his way towards his home.

As he walked he started to think about the events that had lead up to this moment, about all things that happened during the 3 weeks of his life.

He knew that he should be thankful for that he was back, and he was still he could not help to feel nervous. Was all the the things that happened in the U.G. valid in the R.G. or was al his progress and experience products of the special conditions of the UG? Had he really changed or was he going to fall back in his old ways when he was faced with the state of the "real" world?

As he walked home he found himself missing the the UG state of things. The constant treat of erasure had got him to cling on the few persons that was on his side when the finally understood that they were not out to get him. He had lost a little bit of his cynicism but he felt so exposed now when his defensive shell that the cynicism was a part of had begun to crack open and his fragile real persona begun to see the daylight. He understood that he still had a long why to go if he wanted to become a normal teenager, whatever that is.

After 20 minutes of walking he arrived at his family's apartment. It was a small and rather worn out place. Nekus parents were both working long hours to make ends meet. Nor his mother nor his father had a so called "god job" and the rent you have to pay in central Tokyo is ridiculous. Neku nervously approached the door, wondering what his parents would say to him when they saw him again. They must have thought that he was dead by now.

Neku gently opened the door

Hallo is anybody home?

... no answer

He called out again but there were still no response. Just to be safe Neku walked around the whole apartment and looked in every room but he found nether his mother nor his father. But he was not surprised, after all it was in the middle of the day so he really did not expect anyone too be home.

Neku then walked out to the kitchen were the phone was located to call his parents, he thought that he had been away for several weeks, his parents must have thought that he was dead!

He was dealing in the numbers when his eyes darted over to the almanac that was hanging on the wall. The almanac read December 7th the same day that Neku "died"...

WHAT? this almanac must be wrong! I was in the U.G. for several weeks there is no way... unless the time in the RG is put on hold when a person enters the UG... yeah it makes sense, well at least now i have one less thing to worry about.

Neku went in to the living room and sat down in the sofa and turned on the television. He was relived that he was coming home and that his parents weren't worried about him but he could not still suppress his feelings of anxiety .

At fist he did not understand why, after all he had come home unharmed somehow and he had come home at the same time that he was "leaving" so what should he worry about? And he had meet some awesome new friends ... friends how should he handle that? He had never really had any friends. And now he should just hang out with them as if it was something he used to do, how could he do something that?

Neku sighed and lowered his head, why could he not change.


	2. Chapter 2

This is Chapter 2 of the story.

Fell free to write a review, I appreciate it even if you does not find the story to be perfect.

I pain that I'm used to - Chapter 2 Will you fell the same when you see the real me?

Neku continued to hold his head in his hands as the anxiety washed over him. Even though he had felt like this from occasion to occasion when he grew up, he never really got used to the felling. He had repeatedly told himself that this kind of fillings were irrational and to fell like this would not help him in any way possible. By telling himself this he sometimes could lock away his emotions, well... almost. Because the angst always come back often sooner rather than later.

Neku: Pull yourself together...

He slammed his hands in the table that was in front of the sofa that he sat in. Hi sighed as he successfully suppressed his anxiety.

He spent the rest of his evening watching stupid entertainment shows on the television and eating some old cookies that he found in the fridge of all places. His mother had a tendency to freeze all the food that she could get hold of, because she thought that it would last a longer amount of time.

His mother came home around 7 a clock as usual and his father was home shortly afterwards. His parents asked how his day had been when they were sitting down by the dinner table, other than that they did not really talk about much that day. His mother worked at a big mall in the outskirts of Tokyo. And his father worked as a waiter at a shabby restaurant that was located in, as they say the less well of parts of the city. Both of his parents usually had to work overtime to get enough money to pay for rent, clothes food and all the other things that was necessary to make ends meet in the Tokyo. His relationship whit his parents was shallow, they were often to tired to talk to him because their work. And Neku:s social skills did not exactly help ether.

Neku held both respect and de stain for his parents. On one hand he really respected them because they were both really hard working and that was the reason that the family could make the ends meet. On the other had was that he had more or less had to grew up alone because his parents were almost never home and when they were home home they were often to tired to do anything else then the most necessary housework. Neku remembered could be so jealous on the other children in his school when he was younger. Especially when the summer approached and the other kids would start talking about were they were travelling with their family, when any other kid were asking were his family would do during the summer brake he would always try to quickly come up with some lie so he did not have to tell them that his parents worked most of the summer.

The next day started out as it normally did in Neku:s family. He was getting up at 6 a clock, to eat breakfast. When he was eating breakfast at the breakfast table (which also served the dinner table) he was usually only eating with his mother because his father had to get up early to work at the restaurant. His mother was usually leaving the house at 7 to take the train that were stopping a few streets from the mall that she worked in.15 minutes later Neku usually left his house, this time it took a little bit longer since he had allot on his mind. He just barely was in time to catch his morning train.

The train ride to the station were his school was located was always a pain in the but. Not only was the train always so overcrowded that you nearly couldn't move without pressing into someone else but on top of that the air-conditioner that was supposed to make the train ride bearable was nearly always out of order. Usually on the ride on this dreadful machine Neku used to fantasise that his was some place else to escape the uncomfortable situation. But this day his mind continued to drift to very particular subject: Shiki

She was the was the only friend that hi ever had had in his life... well in his limbo state anyway. This friendship thing felt so strange to him, it was actually a bit scary. He was still nervous when he thought about it. Even though he knew that he enjoyed to spend time with Shiki he knew that it would not be the same when they meet in real life. In the U.G they had been forced, or more correctly Shiki had forced him to socially interact. Now he wouldn't have to be friend her for the sake of their survival and he really would not know if he was able to interact under normal circumstances or not. But it was not the only worry that he had. It was also the felling of "friendliness" in it self that was making him nervous. When he thought about his friendship whit Shiki he ... he could not quite put words to his feelings but it was something like a warm and fuzzy felling that was really relaxing. He also noticed that when he thought about his friendship with Shiki it pushed away all the other thoughts he had, As if not this warm feeling in itself was strange enough...

When he arrived at school he quickly hurried to his the classroom where he were having his first lesson of the day. The school day went on as it usually did up until lunchtime. When he was standing in the cue that was leading in to the lunch room he felt like someone was staring at him. He soon discovered that a girl with a green outfit was the "offender". When she discovered that he had discovered her she blushed and quickly looked down in the ground. Well Neku thought "first you get a friend and right after that girls start to check you out ... My life might actually turn around at least a little". After that event Neku was actually happy the rest of the school day, well happier than he usually was. When he was leaving the schoolbuiding it almost was like air outside was easier to breathe then when he was going to school in the morning, even if the traffic seemed to have gotten even worse then it was in the morning.

When he had walked a couple of hundred meters from the school building he noticed that the girl that had ogled earlier him was following him. At first he thought that the girl was following him because she had a crush on him, but he soon dismissed that idea because to him it seemed as something that would only happen in some comical manga. He then come to the conclusion that the girl was most likely following him because she had to take a train at the same subway station that he was going to travel from. During the walk to station the girl seemed to get closer and closer to Neku the as he was approaching the station. When and as he arrived buy the escalator that led down to the station, the girl was only five meters away from him.

As he was about to place his feet at the escalator he heard the girl gasping and in an almost panicky tone say the word stop.

Neku turned around and looked at the girl, she was not very pretty and her bad pastier did not exactly help her. When Neku eyes meet hers her gaze shiftily focused on the ground beneath her. Both of them just looked at earth other for a minute or so, then the girl suddenly decided to put her rug sack on the ground. Neku was just about to ask her what in the world she was doing when she opened the rug sack and slowly took out something that was looking like a stuffed black pig...?


End file.
